


Finally There

by Temptingareadaholic



Category: Free!
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Small bit of angst, follow your dream rin, happy valentine's day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-14
Updated: 2014-02-14
Packaged: 2018-01-12 08:58:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1184341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Temptingareadaholic/pseuds/Temptingareadaholic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The night before their first Olympic race, Haru had trouble sleeping, but Rin can't sleep at all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Finally There

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Okay, so this fic is my gift for Haru and Rin for Valentine's Day! I've always been in love with the idea of Rin going to the Olympics and Haru going because he never wants to be separated from him again. I really hope you enjoy!

A layer of darkness masked the room, trying to instill peace, but anxiety was too tightly woven into the black fabric.  Haru rested in his bed, hoping to drift to sleep under the sound of Rin's slow breathes from the bed over, but he couldn't hear anything over the rhythmic pounding of his own heart. He fought and battled for two years to be here, to be staring at the ceiling of their hotel room as the day of their first race in the Olympics finally loomed over the teammates.

            After high school, when the two had be forced to leave their swimming clubs behind and be thrown into adulthood, they made a promise. Rin would continue to follow the path he had set out on when he decided to form the first relay team and to then train in Australia. He would work his way up to the Olympics and Haru would work with him.

            The choice was too easy to make and Haru remembered the day perfectly. During their last tournament as third-years, Rin, who had by that time already transferred to Iwatobi, took his rightful place in the old elementary relay team. One more race for the team. Rei stood in the stands leading the new swimmers in a chant. He remembered the way the shark swam through the water as an unstoppable force. Fascination overcame the freestyler as his eyes traced over the defined muscles that moved with such grace and flexibility. The artist hand he possessed itched to draw the masterpiece that had laid itself out before him.

            The sight ended too quickly as the hand smacked against the wall, the sound ringing clearly in the dolphin's ears as he jumped into the water, body sliding elegantly through the parting water. He swam with knowledge that this would be the teams last race and this knowledge weighed heavy in his heart, but he only allowed it to spur him on faster and to make it count. Feet collided with the wall, as the swimmer focused his strength on one spot, pushing off with a power given only by his team and the redhead screaming his name.

            His hand absorbed the energy of the wall as Haru finished the race, clearly before any other swimmer.  He reached out for the hand that always waited for him without a doubt and allowed Makoto to hoist him out of the water's embrace. The team enveloped him and cried over their final win. Even the solemn boy failed to hold back tears as two little droplets escaped from his eyes. Never had the raven-haired boy cared about times and winning, but a small little exited boy had decided to show him a sight that could never be unseen and give him a new purpose for swimming.

            Rin had declared there that he would not stop swimming; he would attend the next Olympics and get the gold. The quite boy spoke out. He demanded to follow him and to swim with him.  The happiness

that graced the red-head's face increased the pressure of the tears that the stoic boy desperately fought back. Before one fell again, Rin grabbed him and cried into the crook of his neck, welcoming his friend on the journey the two would partake in.

            Now the day had come. All that work and pain and sweat and tears and friendship had brought them to this point. Tomorrow the pair would swim together along with two other athletes. So often had they discussed this dream that Haru could barely believe that they made it. The dream was so close to becoming reality.

            Finally, the boy could feel exhaustion seep into the excitement and he leaned on the border of consciousness, ready to tip over. He closed his eyes, knowing that the next time they opened, morning would come and the race would be closer. He was falling now, thoughts shutting down and just as he was about to hit the ground, a hand reached out and tugged him back. A voice called out in the darkness, "Haru?" It was Rin. He too had not made the plunge into sleep, kept up by whatever thoughts may be running the red-head. "Are you awake?"

            "I'm right here," answered his friend, hearing the anxiety and underlying weariness in the boy's voice. He flipped his body over and stared into the oceans of blood and there he saw a third emotion: fear. Haru saw the fear of failure, the fear of coming so close to their dream, within just a finger's grasp and then having it all torn away. He always knew failure was an option, but Haru could see that the reality of it didn't hit the redhead until now.

            Fear had always antagonized the two, fighting hard to break them apart. Once, it had almost succeeded as Rin was convinced from his time in Australia that his dream was a swim that was miles away. Fear told him that his friends were gone; they moved on and left his memory in the past. Haru remembered watching a Rin finally shattered in a fit of anger and tears and he remembered dragging him back and showing him that they still were a team; they would always be a team.

            Again, it was time to show him the strength of the bond between them and the feats it could accomplish. "Do you want me to come over there?" He asked, already removing the covers in anticipation for his friend's response.  A weird emotion surged through his veins, creating a tension, which he couldn't quite describe. The raven-haired boy just knew he really wanted him to say yes.

            The answer didn't come for a few minutes and Haru could distinguish the features of the boy filled with terror contemplating the question. Reasons for his hesitation scattered throughout Haru's mind and brought worry to him and he wondered if he said the wrong thing. "Yeah," Rin, answered and Haru smiled slightly as he got up and slid beneath the covers next to his friend. He wrapped his arms around the boy who sat on a rock in the middle of the ocean, waiting for the waves of tears to crash over him. "Haru, I'm scared."

            "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, but the boy knew the answer was obvious; Rin just needed to be goaded in the right direction.

            "I'm so close," he almost cried, confirming blue-eyed boy's suspicions, "I've worked so many years, Haru, we've worked so many years and I can't help but feel like I'm going to fail and lose everything. I've been dreaming for so long, I don't know if I can wake up." Hearing the cracking of the boy's voice sent shivers down Haru's spine, giving him the desire to go out now and come back with a gold medal to wrap around the deserving boy's neck. He wanted to wipe away the tears accumulating in his eyes that were like pools of blood and replace them with the laughter that rung like bells.

            "You have me and I will swim for you," Haru comforted him and squeezed his chest harder, making his presence beyond obvious as he had no intentions of leaving the redhead. "This was your dad's dream first, but now it's yours and mine. We're a team and we always have been." He found himself wanting to say more, to quiet the trembles of the boy in his arms. "You know the other two, they're talented swimmers just like us, just like you. Tomorrow I want you to dive into that water, feel the current you make rub along your sides; and, when your hand hits that wall, I want you to look up and watch me swim for you." The words came out like a torrent and he

knew; tomorrow he would swim for Rin. "Tomorrow you will wake up to a dream come true."

            The boy beside him stopped shaking and leaned into Haru's touch. He couldn't help but notice the way his spine curved into his stomach, they way every indent and bump seemed to fit perfectly. He couldn't help but find peace in the way Rin's breathing slowed and how he could feel each one press against the arms still wrapped around the boy. He couldn't help but hear the way their heartbeats pounded together in synchronization.

            Again Haru found himself guided to the border between consciousness and unconsciousness, ready to fall again. This time he was too close to the ground to be able to be pulled back up, but he could still hear and feel.  Rin shifted beside him, whispering his name several times to see if he was still awake. As much as he wished to call back to him, sleep had buried him in a spot out of reach. He continued his path toward the ground as he felt a hand cup his cheek and words he never expected to hear, "I love you, Haru." Lips pressed against his cheek and he finally hit the ground.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

            For the thousandth time in his life, Haru's hand pressed against the wall of the pool. He heard the screaming of his teammates and looked up to see a hand waiting for him, but unlike his days in elementary school and high school, this hand did not belong to his best friend, Makoto. The hand belonged to Rin. Grasping it firmly, the redhead tugged him out of the pool and pulled him into a hug so tight Haru was surprised that none of his bones had cracked under the pressure. Their two teammates had hugged the pair as well, but they had left long before Rin had even thought to untangle himself from his childhood friend.

            "We did it, Haru, we won!" he cried, the tears streaming freely, mixing with the water from the pool. They walked over to the side of the pool, paying attention to nothing except the person beside them. Cobalt blue stared into crimson red as Haru laced his hand with Rin’s, intertwining each finger one by one, drawing out the moment as long as possible. Haru grinned, but not his usual half-smiled. In euphoria, he opened his mouth and let out a laugh as the two celebrated their hard earned victory. Rin cried even harder and the raven-haired Olympic gold medalist brought their hands up, slowly moving them toward his own lips. He placed a soft kiss on the back of Rin's hand. "I love you, too," he whispered. 

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so thank you so much for reading. I was thinking about what I wanted to do for these two for Valentine's Day and I had this idea when I woke up yesterday morning. Please tell me if you liked it and be on the lookout for my next HaruRin project as I'm starting the planning stage. A big thanks to my editor, whose chose not to be named! Happy Valentine's Day you two!


End file.
